Maria Byrne (Fine Gael)

I thank the Minister of State for coming to the House discuss this important issue. I compliment Senator Keogan and the other Senators who signed the Bill. The sentiments behind it are very important. A few years ago, a consultant at the Mater hospital spoke about two young men who had suffered from cardiac arrests. Allegedly, they had consumed eight to ten cans of drinks that contained stimulants. I understand the sentiments behind the Bill and I believe we need to examine this issue.

I also understand where the Minister of State is coming from, in terms of the need for proof to have all of the facts and figures before we can do something. I understand why the Government amendment has been put forward. The issue of drinks containing stimulants is something we as a Government must take seriously and examine, especially in the case of minors who do not know what they are drinking. In some cases minors drink multiple cans of drinks containing stimulants. We need to see how we can legally implement rules and regulations for these products.

I am not being negative but one concern I have in respect of the Bill is that many small businesses are under a lot of pressure. They have health inspections and inspections for different things and another layer of inspections relating to the implementation of the legislation would put pressure on businesses, especially smaller businesses. It is something that needs to be dealt with in a very delicate way. A lot of small businesses find it difficult to have people on watch all of the time to deal with issues. It may be fine for some of the bigger retailers that have large numbers of staff but many small shops have only one or two staff. If a person who is underage but does not look it were to go into a shop as part of a test case, I am not sure that it would be a fair to fine the shop as a result. It is something I have a reservation about but I understand the sentiment behind it, in that there must be some level of control.

There are many aspects of the Bill that need to be considered. I am sure Senator Keogan and the other Senators who signed the Bill brought it forward in good faith and I do not think anybody is against the Bill or its sentiments.Finding the correct way of regulating it is the way forward. I am sure the Minister of State and her team will be working with the Senator as well as with the different organisations, perhaps the producers of the goods or the people supplying them. I am sure there is a list a mile long as to the different people the Minister of State and her officials will have to reach out to to get that middle point that will be acceptable to all.

This genuinely needs to be looked at because it is alleged there are many health implications associated with some drinks. It was proven that some drinks in Australia and New Zealand had something like 200 mg of stimulants in a can of 350 ml. Many things need to be looked at to get this to a correct level. I wish the Minister of State well in her deliberations and I wish the Senators who brought this forward well.